Significant Drop in DWI Arrests Amid Stay At Home Order

MINNESOTA — The Minnesota Office of Traffic Safety is reporting a large dip in intoxicated drivers after the state closed bars, restaurants and ordered residents to stay home during the coronavirus outbreak.

According to a post from the office, law enforcement officers arrested 94 impaired drivers the weekend of March 27-30. That's down from 126 arrests the weekend before, and significantly down from the 323 arrests the weekend of March 13-16, just before Gov. Tim Walz ordered the closure of bars and restaurants on March 17.

According to the department, the same March 27-30 weekend last year had 293 arrests, meaning arrests dropped almost 68 percent.

As the Office of Traffic Safety notes in their Facebook post, the downward trend is good news but even one DWI is too many. They're reminding anyone who wants to drink to stay home, or plan ahead to get a sober ride home after drinking.

Despite the decrease in DWIs it's not all good news on the roads. Recently Minnesota State Patrol announced their troopers had been seeing increased reports of aggressive driving and excessive speeding. They're reminding drivers that even though there are less cars on the road because of the coronavirus, that is not an excuse to start speeding down the empty highways.

Meanwhile in Minneapolis, several roads are actually being changed or redesigned to given pedestrians and cyclists a little extra space to practice safe social distancing.